Rail passengers at Lockerbie have been dealt a further blow.
TransPennine Express will introduce a new temporary timetable on Monday due to “ongoing issues” – such as staff sickness and training days.
The new schedule will see the last train leave Edinburgh for Lockerbie at 6.11pm, while a later train has been replaced by a bus service which will take more than twice as long.
South Scotland Labour MSP, Colin Smyth, hit out at the changes – claiming the last train before the coronavirus pandemic used to leave Edinburgh at 10.15pm.
He said: “In recent months, train passengers at Lockerbie have been facing near constant disruptions, bus replacements and cancellations.
“Those of us who regularly travel from Lockerbie have sadly grown used to this but more and more of my constituents are telling me that they are being forced to drive up to Edinburgh or Glasgow, or cancel their journey entirely.
“The current timetable is already woeful with fewer services than prior to the pandemic. But the fact TransPennine plan to make it even worse with the last train from Edinburgh at 6.11pm is shocking. We used to have a train from Edinburgh just after 10pm but now it will be four hours earlier which shows once again the utter contempt for Lockerbie passengers from TransPennine.”
The company is one of a number of train operators involved in a dispute with rail drivers’ union Aslef, who will be going on strike on September 15, and the Transport Salaried Staff’s Association (TSSA), who are striking on September 26.
The firm will also be hit by Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) Union members at Network Rail striking on September 15 and 17.
TransPennine’s service, planning and performance director, Jerry Farquharson, said the changes were necessary to provide “certainty” for passengers.
He said: “Our customers want reliable and punctual train services, and we are sorry that we have not been able to provide that due to the ongoing issues.
“In normal circumstances, we have enough people to fully operate our scheduled timetable, however the combination of factors has put unprecedented pressure on our ability to operate a consistent service.
“This temporary amended timetable for our services between the north west of England and Scotland will help us provide more stability and certainty for customers travelling on this route.
“We have put in place measures to communicate this revised timetable to any affected customers and believe that by bringing this timetable in, we will help customers have more confidence and certainty in the delivery of our services.”
Meanwhile, Dumfriesshire MP David Mundell has called for FirstGroup – which owns both TransPennine and Avanti West Coast – to take more responsibility for the poor service at Lockerbie.
And he has been told by Transport Minister Trudy Harrison that when the franchise for the West Coast Mainline expires next month, “all options” will be on the table.
“It is clear to me that responsibility does lie with FirstGroup for the way in which they are managing these franchises and they urgently need to address their part in making sure services are available and that passengers in a more rural area like Dumfriesshire, can be confident in the reliability of services.”
